'Lorcan died because he's a peacemaker', mourners told at funeral of young man (21) stabbed to death on Halloween

The Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.Relatives at the Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.Relatives at the Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.Relatives at the Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.Relatives at the Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.The Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.Relatives at the Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.

Mourners at the funeral of the young Dublin man stabbed to death as he tried to stop a fight on Halloween night were today told that all it takes for evil to triumph is for good people to stay silent.

Lorcan Rooney-O’Reilly (21) from Robert Emmet Close in the south inner city, was murdered in the early hours of November 1 at the nearby Oliver Bond House complex.

Relatives at the Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.

Indirectly urging people who knew Lorcan to speak to gardai about what happened that night Fr Richie Good quoted Edmund Burke’s words on good and evil.

He also quoted the ‘strength through unity’ message used on the posters for Lorcan’s favourite movie ‘V for Vendetta’ and asked that as a community the local parishes should ensure that they are never again back in John’s Lane church on Thomas Street for a young man’s funeral.

Relatives at the Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.

PEACEMAKER

“There is something essentially wrong about what happened to Lorcan. There should be no reason for us to be here,” said Fr Goode.

Relatives at the Funeral of Lorcan O'Reilly at The Church of Saints Augstine and John The Baptist this morning.

“All we can do is cry, and ask the question why did this happen. The reason it happened was Lorcan was true to his nature. Lorcan was a peacemaker,” he added.

“It was acting as peacemaker that brought on this tragedy that cost him his life,” he explained.

Gifts brought to the altar to celebrate Lorcan’s life were a model motorbike, a jacket, a set of earphones, and a carton of milk.

“Lorcan would drink every drop of milk in the house,” said Fr Goode.

Lorcan O’Reilly

He was remembered as a young man who would help others, and spend his money on his family rather than himself.

At the end of the mass Lorcan’s aunt told how he had plans to travel abroad as a carpenter or an electrician.

A slideshow on the altar showed Lorcan in happy times during his short life, with family and friends, and on top of his coffin the now familiar photograph of him smiling beamed out to the mourners.

After funeral mass Lorcan’s remains were brought to Mount Jerome cemetery for burial.

Last night another priest, Fr Niall Coughlan made an impassioned speech in the same church against knife violence at the removal service.

“To pull a knife on someone is a sneaky and cowardly act. It is not manly, it is weak. It is dangerous and it is savagery on a scale that is hard to comprehend,” Fr Coghlan said.

“On November 1 in Dublin, there were seven stabbings, two ended up in a critical condition and Lorcan, an innocent bystander, ended up dead,” he added.

A teenager who is suspected to have been involved in Lorcan’s death has presented himself to gardai who are investigating the case.